The first army units to adopt camouflage were two Napoleonic War skrimishing units of the British army in the form of a rifle green jacket, and dating even further back, Squid have always been able to change color to blend in with surroundings. We have come a long way from the prehistoric squid to the British army to camo seat covers for our cars and trucks.
The word camouflage derives from the French, camoufler, which means “to blind or veil,” and some techniques of camouflaging consist of color changing, countershading and disruptive coloration, which is why the phenomenon of camouflaging has been of interest to zoologists for over a century. Camouflage was developed by French artists that the military hired in 1915 for use in WWI and ended up being adopted by many countries as a common means of modern warfare.
Today, camouflage, though still used in the military (less as tactic, more as tradition), finds its home in accessories. Along with those lovely camo seat covers, stores sell camo baby bedding, camo bathing suits, comouflage purses…even pink camo. Camouflaged accessories and clothing, like camo seat covers, have become embedded in American fashion.